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Cheung: Mass. needs regional cooperation

'I'm a bridge-builder,' says lieutenant governor hopeful

By Hiroko Sato, hsato@lowellsun.com

Updated:
05/22/2014 07:30:38 AM EDT

LOWELL -- Leland Cheung, a Cambridge Democrat, didn't hesitate to criticize Gov. Deval Patrick's administration a few years ago for promising millions of dollars for a local pharmaceutical company in exchange for creating jobs in Boston.

The state's offer sweetened Boston's tax-break package for the company, convincing it to relocate its headquarters from Cambridge, he said. Cheung, a Cambridge city councilor, didn't want his tax dollars used to pit communities against each other for jobs. Besides, he said, he did not see how a company moving a few stops down the subway line would benefit the regional economy as a whole.

"I not only have talking points, but also track records," Leland Cheung, a Democrat running for lieutenant governor, said in a meeting with The Sun editorial board on Wednesday. Cheung serves on the Cambridge City Council. SUN / DAVID H. BROW

Three years after his criticism led to Patrick appointing Cheung to the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative board, Cheung, a former technology venture worker with Ivy League degrees and city council experience under his belt, wants to use his background to help grow the "innovative economy" for Massachusetts as lieutenant governor.

To do that, regional collaboration is the key, Cheung said.

"I'm the only candidate in the race for lieutenant governor who is currently an elected (city) councilor," Cheung said. "I not only have talking points, but also track records."

Cheung, one of the four Democrats vying for lieutenant governor, touted his views and priorities on Wednesday as he sat down with The Sun editorial board.

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Cheung was first elected to the Cambridge City Council in 2009. He said he has particularly focused on investment in education, pushing for the universal kindergarten program and helping children from low-income households get access to the internet.

That's because he believes in economic development that benefits all, he said. Cheung said working with community members and local businesses to satisfy both sides' needs is his strength.

"I've been a bridge-builder," Cheung said.

Leland Cheung, a Cambridge Democrat running for lieutenant governor, meets with The Sun editorial board on Wednesday. Cheung said he has worked for more investment in education, pushed for the universal kindergarten program and helped children from low-income households get access to the Internet. See a video at lowellsun.com. SUN / DAVID H. BROW

Cheung believes that the state should not just focus on Boston and Cambridge for job growth. World-class institutions, such as the plastics-engineering research groups at UMass Lowell, are scattered around the state, and they must be brought together to make Massachusetts an attractive place for businesses to operate, he said. Cheung noted that he worked to organize the first-ever joint meeting between the Cambridge and Boston city councils.

He sees himself doing the "grass-roots work" of reaching out to businesses, mayors, selectmen and other stakeholders to build support for various initiatives as a lieutenant governor. As the No. 2 person in the Statehouse, he could do a lot of heavy lifting -- and rewarding work -- for the governor, he said.

"I'm not running (for lieutenant governor) because I see it as a stepping stone," said Cheung, who earns $75,000 a year in his city councilor position.

A 2000 graduate of Stanford University, Cheung also holds a master's degree in public administration from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management.

"You can either collect paychecks and forge the governor's signature -- or, the sky is the limit," Cheung said of the lieutenant governor's position.

Cheung said what really sets him apart as a councilor and as candidate is the fact that he is the son of immigrants.

He has a deep sense of appreciation for American freedom because he could not criticize the government, as he did to Patrick, had he lived in China, Cheung said.

Asked about the casino issue, Cheung said he is concerned that such all-inclusive entertainment complexes could keep people from spending money outside the facilities, hurting small local businesses. There are better ways to create jobs, he said.

He said he doesn't believe the revenue the Legislature has projected from casinos will materialize. He is also concerned that the money will go out of the state because casinos proposed in Massachusetts are based elsewhere.

Cheung said the Massachusetts economy can grow if the state and communities keep reinvesting tax revenue into education to foster a skilled workforce. The existing skill gaps are still small enough to close, he said.

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